AFC East– Pats back to reclaim their crown in the East

AFC East – Pats back to reclaim their crown in the East

Players who make NFL betting picks must feel like everything is back to normal in the football world, as the New England Patriots are poised to stake their claim to the NFL throne, starting with the AFC East.

The Patriots are massive -1000 favorites in your offshore sportsbook, and with Tom Brady back in the mix, it’ll take a brave player to wager against New England. Wes Welker, Randy Moss and Joey Galloway could now be the most potent receiving trio in the league, while Fred Taylor joins Laurence Maroney in a running-back platoon. On defense, Shawn Springs replaces Ellis Hobbs at the corner, and look for Jerod Mayo to be a Defensive Player of the Year candidate. The defense only has to be decent, because the Patriots are sure to lead the league in points.

Buffalo is next with football odds of +1000, and the acquisition of Terrell Owens has brought a lot of excitement to the Bills. Owens joins Lee Evans, Jake Reed and Marshawn Lynch in an impressive set of skill players, but the onus is on Trent Edwards to do something with all that talent. The defense is solid if not unspectacular, but they’ll need to be on their toes to compete with the Patriots,

Defending champion Miami is rated at +1100, and they grabbed safety Gibril Wilson from Oakland to combat the Patriots’ aerial efficiency. They’ll also have former Dolphin Jason Taylor back to offset Joey Porter. Offensively, the Dolphins are led by Chad Pennington, while Ted Ginn Jr. is considered by many who make sports picks to be one of the breakout players of the year. They should have a better season than the Bills, but they’re still not coming close to the Patriots.

Finally, the New York Jets are rated at +1100 by betting software, and they’ll have a new head coach (Rex Ryan) and a new quarterback (Mark Sanchez), so it could be a long season for Jets fans. The first thing Ryan, Baltimore’s longtime coordinator, needs to fix up the Jets’ pass defense, where they were 29^th in 2008. New York is in transition, so their fans will have to be patient, as they won’t be included in any sports picks any time soon.